Khmer Rouge Timeline

French Rule -- 1863

Cambodia becomes a protectorate

of France

Independence – Nov. 9, 1953

Cambodia gains independence from

France after 90 years of French Rule

King Sihanouk becomes ruler of

Kingdom of Cambodia

Beginnings of Khmer Rouge – 1960

The communist party of

Kampuchea (CPK) forms out of

growing opposition to the rule of

King Sihanouk

King Sihanouk nicknames the CPK

“Red Khmer” (Khmer Rouge in

French) as a sign he does not take

it seriously

Armed Rebellion – 1963

Leaders of Khmer Rouge

flee home base of Phnom

Penh and begin an armed

rebellion

Seizing Power – April 17, 1975

After years of civil war, Khmer Rouge forces seize

Phnom Penh & establish their regime

They drive city-dwellers into the countryside ,

attempting to create an agrarian, communist utopia

Brutal persecution of intellectuals, religious figures, and

ethnic minorities begins

Khmer Rouge bans family relationships

Begins aggressive campaign of brainwashing young

children to worship the state & spy on their parents

Report parents as enemies of the state

S-21 – August 1975

4 months after the Khmer Rouge

establish heir regime, a local high

school in Phnom Penh is converted

into the notorious S-21 (Tuol Sleng

Prison & Interrogation Center)

Run by Duch (Cambodia’s Heinrich

Himmler)

17,000 “traitors” brought to prison, tortured, and systemically executed

between 19751979

Four-Year Plan – 1976

Khmer Rouge establishes the state of Democratic Kampuchea

Leaders write first 4-Year Plan, calling for seizure of private property & rice cultivation as a

primary initiative

Little regard to families

Citizens pledge allegiance to the state & assigned work groups

Goal = 3 tons of rice per hectare across the country

Requires working over 12 hours a day

Inhumane conditions

Hundreds of thousands starve to death in rice fields

Face of Angka – September 1977

Most Cambodians had no idea who was ruling in

first 2 years of Khmer Rouge rule

Khmer Rouge leaders, collectively known as Angka,

believe secrecy is best way to control the

population

Pulled back the curtain in Sept. 1977 when Saloth

Sar – “Pol Pot” – introduces himself in national radio

broadcast

Second Round of Purges – 1977

Pol Pot begins a second round of purges

eliminating all communist dissidents and

moderates

Early on, violence targeted specific groups

By 1978m executions become more widespread

& affect all of Cambodia’s population

Begins attacks on people across borders in

Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam

Speculation that Pol Pot wanted to reclaim parts

of Vietnam populated by the Khmer

30,000 Vietnamese citizens murdered 1977-79

President Carter Makes a Decision – April

1978

US President Jimmy Carter declares the

Khmer Rouge “the worst violator of human

rights in the world”

Irony – Khmer Rouge blames the US

bombing of Cambodia in Vietnam War for

the rise of the radical communist

movement!

People’s Republic of Kampuchea – 1979

After the fall of Phnom Penh, the PRK is

established with Vietnamese support

The Khmer Rouge’s campaign to

create a classless society & resulting

executions of intellectuals, artists, and

other educated people make

rebuilding difficult

Fall of Khmer Rouge – January 1979

Vietnamese forces take Phnom

Penh and the Khmer Rouge

regime falls

Pol Pot continues to lead the

Khmer Rouge as an insurgent

until 1997

Estimated that 1.2 to 1.7 million

people died of starvation or

execution while Khmer Rouge

ruled

The Paris Conference – 1989

Following the first Paris Conference on

Cambodia, Vietnamese troops withdraw

Khmer Rouge attempts to regain power

The Paris Agreement – 1991

The Paris Peace Agreement is signed by the four opposing factions

vying for power

The Khmer Rouge is forced to sign, but refuses to abide by its

provisions

Coalition Government – 1994

General elections result in the FUNCINPEC

Party and the Cambodian People’s Party

forming a coalition government

Khmer Rouge Outlawed – 1994

The Cambodian National

Assembly votes to outlaw the

Khmer Rouge

Pol Pot Arrested – 1997

Pol Pot is arrested by one of his colleagues after in-fighting

within the Khmer Rouge

He is sentenced to house arrest

Pol Pot Dies – April 15, 1998

Pol Pot dies

Nuon Chea (“Brother Number Two”)

surrenders & is allowed to live as a

private citizen in Pailin province,

Cambodia

UN Tribunal Recommendations – February

18, 1999

The “Report to the Group of Experts for Cambodia

Pursuant to General Assembly Resolution 52/125”

is published by a UN group charged with

determining the feasibility of trying Khmer Rouge

leaders

The report recommends the creation of an

international tribunal & truth commission to

charge & try Khmer Rouge leaders for their crimes

Legislation approving the tribunal passes by the

Cambodian Senate, National Assembly, and

Constitutional Council in 2001

Fate of Khmer Rouge Leaders

1999 - Duch of S-21 Prison arrested & charged with

murder and membership in an outlawed group

He appears in court for the first time in 2007

In 2010, Duch is convicted of crimes against humanity

& sentenced to 35 years in jail

2002 – Ke Pauk, former Khmer Rouge commander,

dies

2002 – military commander Ta Mok charged with

crimes against humanity; he dies without going to

trial in 2006

2007 – “Brother Number Two” is arrested & charged

with war crimes and crimes against humanity

He & 3 other members of the Khmer Rouge began

trial in 2011